Model Students

Louise Markey, Joeri Van Yper, and Makoto Takada seemed nervous at the start of “The Next Generation of Fashion,” a panel consisting of, the moderator Judith Thurman said, “the three best students recommended by their schools.” But as towering girls in heels came onstage in their designs, one by one, the designers began to relax. If only all fashion shows were as calm and practical!

Markey, of Central Saint Martins, in London (Thurman: “the Harvard of fashion school.”), rattled off her collection’s inspirations: “Elizabethan style, active sports wear, 80’s party dresses, and folk toys for their color.” She pointed out the collar of the dress (“there’s the T-shirt influence”), and the flair in its skirt, which was built like a farthingale.

Next was Van Yper, of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, in Antwerp (Thurman: “the cauldron of the avant-garde.”) He said he was inspired by a story of an “adventuring couple that froze to death on a mountain.” Wood crystals adorned the bottom of the hand-knit dress, and snowboard binders clasped wooden platform shoes to the model’s feet. An Inuit-inspired hat was perched on the model’s head.

Takada, of the Fashion Institute of Technology, in New York City, cited Charlie Chaplin and the movie “Atonement” as his inspiration. “But not the story,” he clarified, “just the colors from the movies.” His jodhpur navy suit and silk blouse made Thurman sigh. “It’s really beautiful,” she said. “I want it. But my body stops where the legs begin.”

A young woman in the audience asked: What do they think of “Project Runway”? Van Yper confessed he had been asked to join the Belgian version of the show. “But a few weeks of playing around with scissors? I’m not interested.” Takada added, “I think exposure like that is dangerous. People buy your clothes, not you.”